Solaris stopped his shards and turned back after hearing what had just left Ember's mouth.
destroyer of earth? God in human clothes? I thought this guy was our teammate?
"What do you mean, destroyer of Earth? I thought he was a hunter like you?"
"He was, but that was before HE came to be...." Ember looked at the ground, his face contorted in a look of rage, powerlessness, and grief. "Now is not the time to tell you all of this, so let's just keep moving."
"Alright, let's keep moving. I'm sorry I asked."
Ember didn't speak and just began to move; the still atmosphere grew tangible as if it could be cut with a knife.
That singular question was something Solaris shouldn't have asked.
As they walked in silence, only two feet walked across the ground, both of them had their heads glued to the ground, their faces displaying a hopeless frown.
I am starting to doubt that we can get home.
Solaris began to feel more and more depressed as they walked; his heart began to sink as he thought about how he would never be able to see Sami, Selen, or even Cedric ever again.
He had never expected to feel this way about anyone.
So this feeling was new to him, everyday before he met Selen and Ember had been all about him, in fact he wasn't even sure if now it wasn't all about him, He was the one that wanted to see them, He was the one that missed them, He was the one that wanted to go home, he had no idea how they felt, he didn't even know if they wanted him back, all he had been was a...
What even am I to them?Am I even someone they would miss? Why would they? I've done nothing to help them; I've only hurt them, especially Selen. I doubt she'd even care that I'm gone.
As he thought, he subconsciously looked over to Ember.
His eyes lingered before returning to looking at his chest, then his arms.
I'm sure they miss HIM. If only I could be strong like HIM, if only I were better like HIM.
A small drop of water slipped from Solaris' eye as these thoughts grew louder. He felt his body growing hotter, and he felt his soul slipping as he could no longer bear the burden of these thoughts.
Everything hurt.
"I doubt they care."
An inaudible whisper escaped his lips as he felt the drop fall from his cheek.
I don't even care if they want me back; I want them back, I miss them so much, I want to go home.
Having solved the food issue and water issue, Solaris was left with nothing external left to distract him; all he could think about was going home and seeing his friends, even if they didn't see him that way.
He didn't care that he missed them so much; it burned his heart just to think about never seeing them again. His soul quaked at the thought of never learning with Sami again, it seared with never trying to talk with Selen again, it shattered with never listening to Cedric drone on for hours again.
It had only been a few months since they had met each other, and yet he felt so strongly about each and every one of them; even if he had never admitted it, he would've been even more distraught had Ember never followed him.
Solaris opened his mouth, his lips quivering, his eyes on the verge of crying, and asked.
"Why did you follow me here?"
Ember glared up and spoke.
"What kind of mentor would I be if I let my student go somewhere alone? especially somewhere unknown, I'd be the worst of them all."
Solaris's eyes began to water as he spoke.
"Plus Sami would miss you if you died.... and I would to"
As those words rang into Solaris's ears, they resonated into his soul; he knew not of the true meaning behind the words, yet that didn't matter to him.
"Thank you."
A slight smile grew on his face; those words meant much more than Ember had realized.
It was something Solaris had never encountered before, something he had been scared to encounter more than any demon or giant insect; it was simply himself.
Life before had been so basic, yet he had still never experienced all it had to offer.
A smile rested on his face as his eyes poured tears down; he had no idea what he was feeling, all he knew was that he wanted to cry.
Tears of joy or tears of sadness, he didn't know. All he wanted was to let it out; he had been suppressing it for too long.
As he began to cry more and more, he slowly drifted higher into the sky, letting himself be alone and perhaps free enough to let himself feel.
His altitude grew, and so did the amount of tears in his eyes. Growing higher, he began to feel something in the distance, something different; his expression remained the same.
As he glanced up, he saw something beyond the horizon. He wiped his eyes just as fast as they filled with more tears. With a short glance beyond the stream of tears, he saw it, a bright light, the light of the sun just beyond him, and in front of it was a massive amount of buildings in a circle; it was a city.